Connector

ABSTRACT

A connector of upper contact type for an FPC comprising a cover housing constituted of synthetic resin alone. The housing includes first contacts and second contacts alternately arranged in parallel on a line. Each of the first contacts has an elastic arm coming into contact with an upper contact point of FPC when the cover housing is closed. On the other hand, each of the second contacts has a tuning-fork-shaped contact constituted of a pair of a short arm and a long arm, the short arm coming into contact with the upper contact point of the FPC so that the tuning-fork-shaped contact may exert a coupled force on the FPC when the cover housing is closed. With such a configuration, this connector reduces deformation of the cover housing while eliminating use of any reinforcing metal member in the cover housing.

This application is based on and claims the benefit of priority fromJapanese Patent Application No. 2005-362781, filed on Dec. 16, 2005, thecontent of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a connector to be connected with a flatflexible cable such as an FPC (Flexible Printed Circuit) and an FFC(Flexible Flat Cable), which are generically called FPC in thisspecification, and particularly to a ZIF (Zero Insertion Force) typeconnector for a FPC which requires little force for insertion andremoval of the FPC.

2. Related Art

A connector for an FPC to be surface-mounted on a printed circuit board,or a surface mount connector for an FPC has an insulated housing formedwith an insertion portion for inserting the FPC and a plurality ofcontacts fitted onto the housing side by side in a line at predeterminedpitches. To bring the FPC into touch with the contacts, for example, anopening and closing cover housing is provided at the insertion portion.

As such a connector for an FPC, there has been invented a connector foran FPC capable of attaining a stable pressing force against the FPC byincreasing the strength of a cover housing pressing a plurality ofcontacts against the FPC and capable of being connected whether theconductor pattern of the FPC is in an upward or downward position. (Forexample, refer to Patent Documents 1 below.)

Furthermore, as such a connector for FPC, there has been also inventedan upper contact type connector for an FPC capable of ensuringsufficient contact pressure against the FPC by preventing the contactsfrom being excessively deformed. (For example, refer to Patent Document2 below.)

Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application PublicationNo. Hei 11-185896

Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application PublicationNo. 2001-126793

FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional view of a connector for an FPCaccording to Patent Document 1 illustrating a constitutional viewincluding an FPC with a cover housing in an open position. FIG. 13 usedherein corresponds to FIG. 4 in Patent Document 1.

As shown in FIG. 13, a connector 8 includes a housing 82, a plurality ofcontacts 83, a cover housing 84 and a plurality of cover contacts 820.The housing 82 is formed with an opening 87 open upwards. The pluralityof contacts 83 are stored and retained in the housing 82 at regularpitches, and a contact portion 817 of an elastic contact beam 814 isdisposed at the opening 87. The plurality of contacts 83 includes an arm815 and an elastic contact beam 814, and the arm 815 is formedintegrally with the elastic contact beam 814. The arm 815 extends to theopening 87 along an upper wall 86 of the housing 82, and the front endthereof is formed with a pivotal support portion 818. The pivotalsupport portion 818 faces the contact portion 817.

As shown in FIG. 13, the cover housing 84 is supported, engaged with thepivotal support portion 818 and moves between a pressure position inproximity to the contact portion 817 and an open position separated fromthe contact portion 817. When the cover housing 84 is moved toward apressure position, FPC 1 disposed on the elastic contact beam 814 ispressed against the elastic contact beam 814. The plurality of covercontacts 820 are arranged on the inside of the cover housing 84,corresponding to the contacts 83, and are engaged with the pivotalsupport portion 818. The plurality of cover contacts 820 are pressedagainst FPC 1 for contact at a pressurizing position, and comes intocontact with the pivotal support portion 818 for electrical continuity.

FIGS. 14A and 14B are longitudinal sectional views of a connector for anFPC according to Patent Document 2, and FIG. 14A is a longitudinalsectional view of the whole connector and FIG. 14B is an enlarged viewof the principal part of FIG. 14A. FIGS. 14A and 14B used hereincorresponds to FIG. 5 of Patent Document 2.

As shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B, a connector 9 includes a housing 94, aplurality of tuning-fork-shaped contacts 923 and a cover housing 97. Ahousing 94 is formed with an opening 96 open upwards. A plurality ofcontacts 923 are arranged so as to face the opening 96 in the housing94. The contacts 923 includes an elastic piece 935 positioned on theupper side and a stationary piece 933 positioned on the lower side, theelastic piece 935 and the stationary piece 933 facing each other. Thecover housing 97 is pivotally supported by the pivotal support portion(not shown) of the housing 94 or a member retained on the housing 94,and opens or closes the opening 96 with rotation thereof.

As shown in FIG. 14A or 14B, the free end of the elastic piece 935 hasan upper branch piece 939 and a lower branch piece 941 branching in aroughly C shape. The lower branch piece 941 includes a contact 948coming into pressure contact with FPC 1. One end of the cover housing 97is disposed between the upper branch piece 939 and the lower branchpiece 941 to regulate a displacement range of the elastic piece 935. Theone end of the cover housing 97 includes a cam surface 959 pushing upthe upper branch piece 939 so as to expand an insertion space 93 for FPC1 below the contact 948.

As shown in FIG. 13, the cover contact 820 is produced by punching ametal sheet in the same way as for the contact 83 and is formedintegrally with the cover housing 84 by means of insert molding at thetime of forming the synthetic resin cover housing 84.

As shown in FIG. 14A or 14B, a pair of pivotal spindles (not shown)having a pivotal axial line A1 is provided on both ends of a metal wire945 embedded in the cover housing 97. Moreover, a metal reinforcing wire951 is embedded in the cover housing 97. To insert the metal wires 945,951 into the synthetic resin cover housing 97 at the time of formingthem into the synthetic resin cover housing 97 and embed them into amolded product of the cover housing 97, the metal wires 945, 951 aresupported at a predetermined position within a metallic mold.

A connector for the FPC which has a FPC conductor pattern facing upwardsor which is of an upper contact type, as shown in Patent Documents 1 and2, prevents deformation of the cover housing by insert molding(integrally forming) a metal member into the synthetic resin coverhousing.

However, such integrally molded products including metal members causehigher costs in production than molded products made of synthetic resinalone. As a matter of course, an increase in the number of componentscauses higher costs. This is because supporting a metal member in apredetermined position within a metal mold requires much production timeper product and causes difficulty in simultaneously forming a pluralityof products. An increase in the cost of a cover housing leads to ahigher cost of the connector for an FPC.

Attainment of a molded cover housing made of synthetic resin alone bydevising a structure of an upper contact type connector for an FPC canreduce the production cost of the connector. As a connector for an FPChaving the multi-pin contacts and narrow pitches, a connector for FPC isrequired which has a structure capable of completely maintaining anopen/closed position without deforming the cover housing. These areproblems addressed by the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the aforementioned problems, it is an object of the presentinvention to provide a connector for an FPC having a structure capableof performing complete switching without deforming a cover housing madeof synthetic resin alone, for an upper contact type connector for an FPChaving multi-pin contacts and small pitches.

The inventors of the present invention have invented the following newconnector for an FPC employing a structure in which a housingaccommodates first contacts and second contacts alternately arranged inparallel on a line, each of the first contacts having an elastic armcoming into contact with an upper contact point of an FPC when a coverhousing is closed and each of the second contacts having atuning-fork-shaped contact formed out of a pair of a long arm and ashort arm coming into contact with an upper contact point of an FPC sothat the tuning-fork-shaped contact may apply a coupled force to theFPC.

In a first aspect of the connector, a connector including a housing, acover housing and a plurality of first contacts and second contacts, thehousing being roughly rectangular parallelepiped in shape and having arecess formed for insertion of an FPC, the cover housing being roughlyrectangular in shape for openably and closably covering the recess ofthe housing and the first contacts and second contacts being alternatelyarranged in parallel on a line inside the housing, in which each of thefirst contacts includes a first fixing arm and a first horizontal armopposing each other, a first connection leg for connecting base ends ofthe first fixing arm and the first horizontal arm to each other, a firstpressing portion provided on the tip side of the first horizontal armand opposing the bottom surface of the recess, an elastic arm extendingbetween the first fixing arm and the first horizontal arm and opposingthe first horizontal arm, and a first contact point provided on the tipside of the elastic arm and opposing the bottom surface of the recess;each of the second contacts includes a second fixing arm and a secondhorizontal arm opposing each other, a second connection leg forconnecting base ends of the second fixing arm and the second horizontalarm to each other, a second pressing portion provided on the tip side ofthe second horizontal arm and opposing a bottom surface of the recess, ashort arm and a long arm extending between the second fixing arm and thesecond horizontal arm and opposing each other, a second contact pointprovided on the tip side of the short arm and positioned near theopposite side to an opening in the recess opposing the bottom surface ofthe recess, and a protrusion provided on the tip side of the long armand positioned near the opening in the recess, protruding toward thedirection of the top face of the recess; and the cover housing includesa cam portion positioned between the first pressing portion and the tipof the elastic arm and pressed by the first pressing portion, and anengaging portion positioned between the second pressing portion and thebottom surface of the recess and engaging with the second pressingportion.

According to the first aspect of the connector, the connector includes aroughly rectangular parallelepiped housing, a roughly rectangularplate-shaped cover housing and a plurality of first contacts and secondcontacts. The housing is formed with a recess for inserting an FPC. Thecover housing covers the recess so as to permit opening and closing. Theplurality of first contacts and second contacts are alternately arrangedin parallel on a line inside the housing.

Generally, an FPC is bonded with copper foil serving as a conductorpattern on a base film formed out of insulated polyester or polyimide.The conductor pattern is covered with an insulating film, and one end ofthe FPC has an exposed conductor pattern for conductive contact with thecontacts provided on the connector. The FPC applied to the connector ofthe present invention is an FPC one side of which has a conductivepattern provided on a single side of a base film, and the end of theone-sided FPC has an exposed conductor pattern on a single side of thebase film. The conductive pattern of the one-sided FPC is inserted intothe recess so as to become an upward or upper contact point.

The housing has insulation properties. The insulating housing is ahousing made of non-conductive material. For example, by molding asynthetic resin material, a desired shape of an insulating housing canbe attained. Similarly, the cover housing has insulating properties. Bymolding a synthetic resin material, a desired shape of an insulatingcover housing can be attained. As the housing and the cover housing, aninsulator of the same or different material may be used.

The housing is formed with, for example, a thin rectangularparallelepiped recess for inserting an FPC. The FPC is inserted towardan insertion portion from an opening side of the recess on the housing.In inserting the FPC into the recess of the housing, for example, a pairof opposed standing walls forming the recess of the housing regulate thecross direction of the FPC and are positioned to match the position ofthe plurality of first contacts and second contacts.

The insertion portion is formed with a stopping wall with which the FPCend is brought into contact. Since the plurality of first contacts andsecond contacts are pressed in the housing, the stopping wall is formedin the shape of comb's teeth.

For the FPC to be diagonally inserted at a predetermined open angle tothe bottom surface of the recess, the insertion portion may be formed soas to be slightly larger than the thickness of the FPC and so that asurface facing the bottom face of the recessed portion is slanting. Thisconnector is a ZIF connector which hardly requires little force toinsert and remove the FPC into/from the insertion portion.

For example, in the cover housing, a pivot shaft both ends of which arepivotally supported on the housing is mounted on one end and the otherend of the cover housing opens and closes the opening of the recess. Apair of columnar protrusions coaxial to the pivot shaft may be disposedon both sides of the one end of the cover housing and are pivotallysupported at both ends thereof on the housing. A pair of support members(for example, a pair of tabs described later) pressed in the housing maybe constructed to pivotally support the pair of columnar protrusions.

The description “the cover housing covers the recess in a way capable ofopening and closing” means to that the cover housing that covers therecess is opened to have the FPC inserted therein, and that the coverhousing closes to cover the recess so that the cover housing presses theFPC toward the bottom surface of the recess, resulting in a conductivecontact of first to second contacts with the FPC. The connector may beprovided with a locking mechanism in order to maintain the cover housingin the closed position when the cover housing is closed.

The first and second contacts have conductive properties. The conductivecontact is a contact made of a material having a low resistivity, andthe first and second contacts can achieve a desired shape, for example,by precise punching of a metal thin plate made of copper alloy. Acontact formed out of a metal plate is sometimes referred to as a planarcontact.

In the housing, for example, a plurality of longitudinal rectangulargrooves are formed in the shape of the teeth of a comb from the openingof the recess to the insertion portion and further in a rear directionof the insertion portion. The first contact is pressed into thelongitudinal rectangular grooves from the opening of the recess. In thehousing, on the other hand, a plurality of longitudinal rectangulargrooves are formed in the shape of comb-teeth from the opposite side tothe opening of the recess toward the opening. The second contact ispressed into the longitudinal rectangular grooves.

The longitudinal rectangular groove has a width slightly larger than theplate thickness of the first contact and the second contact so that theelastic arm, the short arm and the long arm described later cannot avoidbecoming deflected. The first contact and the second contact may have anequal plate thickness, and the longitudinal rectangular grooves may havean equal width. It can be said that the first contact and the secondcontact in the upper and lower direction respectively are pressed intothe housing so as to come into contact with the top surface and thebottom surface respectively of the recess of the housing.

The words “parallel arrangement” or “arranged in parallel” describedherein mean that the contacts are adjacent to each other and aligned ina line. The interval may be equal to the interval of the conductivepattern of the FPC (the conductive pattern disposed at an end of theFPC).

The connector according to the first aspect of the present inventiondescribed above is constructed so that the first and the second contactsinclude a fixing arm and a horizontal arm opposing each other. Moreover,the first and the second contacts include a connection leg having oneend connecting to the fixing arm and the other end connecting to thehorizontal arm.

The first contact has an elastic arm which extends between the fixingarm and the horizontal arm of the first contact and opposes thehorizontal arm. The elastic arm extends in a direction substantiallyparallel to the fixing arm. The second contact has a short arm and along arm which extends between the fixing arm and the horizontal arm ofthe second contact and opposes with each other. The short arm and thelong arm strictly have no linear contour, however, extend in a directionsubstantially parallel to the fixing arm.

The horizontal arms of the first contact and the second contact have apressing portion opposing the bottom surface of the recess. The elasticarm has a first contact point opposing the bottom surface of the recesson the tip side thereof. The short arm has the second contact pointpositioned near the back of the recess, or the opposite side to theopening of the recess on the tip side thereof. The short arm facing thebottom surface of the recess, in other words, facing downwards. The longarm has a protrusion protruding upwards on the tip side thereof. In thisspecification, “downwards” means a direction which is the bottom surfaceof the recess, and “upwards” means a direction which is the top face ofthe recess with which the cover housing is connected.

For example, the first contact includes the connection leg with one endof the fixing arm standingly provided, and the horizontal arm isextendedly branched. Moreover, a pressing portion opposing the bottomsurface of the recess is provided on the tip side of the horizontal arm.Preferably, the horizontal arm of the first contact is a rigid arm witha higher second moment of area than that of the second contact. Theelastic arm is extendedly branched from the connection leg between thefixing arm and the horizontal arm of the first contact. The elastic armhas the first contact point facing downwards, opposing the bottomsurface of the recess on the tip side thereof and, between the firstcontact point and the fixing arm arranged in the bottom surface of therecess, the FPC is inserted. The elastic arm has a function of springthat serves as a so-called cantilever contact.

The second contact includes a connection leg with one end of the fixingarm standingly provided, and the horizontal arm is extendedly branchedtoward the opening side of the recess from the connection leg. Inaddition, the pressing portion opposing the bottom surface of the recessis provided on the tip side of the horizontal arm. Preferably, thehorizontal arm of the second contact is a rigid arm with a smallersecond moment of area than that of the first contact. The short arm andthe long arm opposing each other extend between the fixing arm and thehorizontal arm of the second contact. The short arm has the secondcontact point facing downwards on the tip side thereof. The FPC isinserted between the second contact point and the long arm arranged inthe bottom surface of the recess. The short arm has a function of aspring that serves as a so-called cantilever contact.

The length from the base end to the tip of the short arm is shorter thanthat of the long arm and as described later, the base ends of the shortarm and the long arm are connected to each other through a connectingportion, thereby providing a constitution of an uneven lengthconstituting a pair of the short arm and the long arm, that is, atuning-fork-shaped contact. Positioning the second contact point of theshort arm near the back of the recess, or the opposite side to theopening of the recess and positioning the protrusion of the long armnear the opening of the recess means that the second contact point andthe protrusion are spaced apart from each other at a predeterminedinterval. Moreover, the FPC can be inserted in between the secondcontact point and the protrusion. The protrusion is biased so as to pushup the FPC.

According to the first aspect of the connector described above isstructured so that the cover housing has the cam portion and theengaging portion. The cam portion is positioned between the pressingportion of the first contact and the tip end of the elastic arm and ispressed against the pressing portion of the first contact. The engagingportion is positioned between the pressing portion of the second contactand a protrusion described later, which is a tip of the long arm in thebottom surface of the recess, and is engaged with the pressing portionof the second contact.

The cam portion, formed around the pivot shaft, may be a plate camhaving a plane curve as its contour, or an eccentric cam having aportion of the contour deviated from the center axis of the pivot shaft.Moreover, the tip side of the elastic arm is a follower displaced by apivotal movement of the cam portion.

For example, as described later, the cam portion has a first contourportion and the second contour portion continuous to the first contour.When the first contour portion abuts against the pressing portion of thefirst contact, the cam portion is biased by a strong force from the tipside of the elastic arm to keep the cover housing closed. On the otherhand, when the second contour portion abuts against the pressing portionof the first contact, the cam portion is biased by a weak force from thetip side of the elastic arm to keep the cover housing open.

When the FPC is inserted into the recess and the cover housing isclosed, the cam portion pivots, so that the tip side of the elastic armis displaced and a plurality of contact points of the first contact comeinto contact with a conductive pattern of the FPC for electricalcontinuity. When the cover housing is closed, a plurality of secondcontact points of the second contact come into contact with a conductivepattern of the FPC for electrical continuity. Specifically, when thecover housing is closed, the plurality of first contact points of thefirst contact push down the FPC to the bottom surface side of therecess. Also, a plurality of protrusions of the second contactprotruding toward the top surface of the recess are pushed down to thebottom surface side of the recess. The short arm and the long armbecomes integrated into one body, which pivots around the base ends ofthe short arm and the long arm. In other words, the tuning-fork-shapedcontact as the pair of the short arm and the long arm works so as toapply a couple of force to the FPC. The plurality of second contactpoints generate a couple of force toward the end of the FPC. Theplurality of second contact points come into contact with the conductivepattern of the FPC, thus enabling electrical continuity.

When the cover housing is closed, a uniformly distributed load to beseparated from the bottom surface of the recess is made to work on thecover housing by a reaction of the tip side of the elastic arm. In otherwords, a force which generates curving so as to separate from the bottomsurface of the recess is made to work on the cover housing. The pressingportions of the plurality of first and second contacts exert a forcemoving toward the bottom surface of the recess to the cam portion andthe engaging portion so as to resist a uniformly distributed loadseparated from the bottom surface of the recess.

A connector in the conventional art has a proportional relationship tothe number of contacts, and applies a proportional force for deforming acover housing. Accordingly, a multi-pin connector has anintegrally-formed metal member for reinforcement to prevent deformationof the cover housing. On the other hand, the connector according to thefirst aspect described above does not receive a strong force deformingthe cover housing from the second contact. In other words, it can besaid that the force of deforming the cover housing is half the number ofcontacts. A well-balanced design of the reaction of the elastic arm andthe drag of the pressing portion of the second contact can allow thecover housing to be a molded product made of synthetic resin alone.

For example, the number of poles of the contacts in the connector is 51and the contact pitch is 0.3 mm. The connector according to theinvention first aspect, as a connector for an FPC of an upper contacttype with a small pitch, provides a connector for FPC having a structurecapable of performing complete switching without deforming the coverhousing made of synthetic resin alone.

According to the second aspect of the connector as described in thefirst aspect of the present invention, the horizontal arm of the firstcontact is a rigid arm having a larger geometrical moment of inertiathan that of the second contact.

The tip of the horizontal arm of the first contact has a pressingportion opposing the bottom surface of the recess and, when the coverhousing is closed, receives a reaction separated from the bottom surfaceof the recess from the elastic arm through a cam portion. To ensure thatthe plurality of cam portions are not curved by the reaction received asa uniformly distributed load, the horizontal arm of the first contact isa rigid arm with a higher geometrical moment of inertia than that of thesecond contact.

According to the third aspect of the connector as described in the firstor the second aspect of the present invention, the cam portion includesa first contour portion for maintaining a closed position of the coverhousing, and a second contour portion which is continuous with the firstcontour portion and maintains an open position of the cover housing, thecam portion biases the first contact point to the FPC when the pressingportion of the first contact engages with the second contour portion.

According to the fourth aspect of the connector as described in thefirst through three aspect of the present invention, the first contactpoint is positioned nearer to the opening side of the recess than thesecond contact point.

According to the fifth aspect of the connector as described in the firstthrough fourth aspect of the present invention, wherein the base ends ofthe short arm and the long arm are connected to each other and the baseend of the long arm is standingly extended from the fixing arm of thesecond contact.

According to the sixth aspect of the connector as described in the firstthrough fifth aspect of the invention, the first contact includes afirst lead portion extending in a non-insertion direction of FPC fromthe opening side of the recess, the second contact includes a secondlead portion extending in an insertion direction of the FPC from theopening side of the recess, and a bottom surface of the first leadportion and a bottom surface of the second lead portion are soldered toa printed circuit board.

The connector provides a connector for a printed circuit boardsurface-mounted onto the printed circuit board by soldering theplurality of first and second lead portions to the printed circuitboard. Furthermore, the first lead portion and the second lead portionare disposed in an opposing direction, therefore, a pitch betweenpatterns connected to the first and second lead portions can beincreased more than the case of the first and second lead portionsextending in the same direction. This connector is effective,especially, for the case where the pitch of contacts is small orapproximately 0.3 mm.

The connector according to the present invention, as a connector for anFPC of an upper contact type with a small pitch, provides a connectorfor an FPC having a structure capable of performing complete switchingwithout deforming the cover housing made of synthetic resin alone.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a perspective outline view showing an embodiment of aconnector for an FPC, in which the principal part is cross-sectionallyillustrated;

FIG. 2 shows a perspective outline view of a connector for FPC accordingto the present invention, in a state where the cover housing is opened;

FIG. 3 shows a plan view of a connector for an FPC according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 4 shows a front view of a connector for an FPC according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 shows a longitudinal sectional view in which the side surface ofthe first contact of a connector for FPC according to the presentembodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where the coverhousing is open;

FIG. 6 shows a longitudinal sectional view in which the side surface ofthe second contact of a connector for FPC according to the presentembodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where the coverhousing is open;

FIG. 7 shows a longitudinal sectional view, taken on line Y-Y of FIG. 4,of a connector for FPC according to the present invention;

FIG. 8 shows a longitudinal sectional view, taken on line Z-Z of FIG. 4,of a connector for FPC according to the present invention;

FIG. 9 shows a longitudinal sectional view in which the side surface ofthe first contact of a connector for FPC according to the presentembodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where the coverhousing is closed;

FIG. 10 shows a longitudinal sectional view in which the side surface ofthe second contact of a connector for FPC according to the presentembodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where the coverhousing is closed;

FIG. 11 shows a longitudinal sectional view, taken on line Y-Y of FIG.4, of a connector for FPC according to the present invention;

FIG. 12 shows a longitudinal sectional view, taken on line Z-Z of FIG.4, of a connector for FPC according to the present invention;

FIG. 13 shows a longitudinal sectional view of a connector for an FPC ofthe conventional art in a state where FPC is inserted with the coverhousing kept open;

FIG. 14A shows a longitudinal sectional view of a connector for an FPCof the conventional art, which illustrates the whole connector; and

FIG. 14B shows a longitudinal sectional view of a connector for the FPCof the conventional art, which illustrates an enlarged principal part ofFIG. 14A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference to the drawings, the best mode for carrying out theinvention will be described hereinafter.

FIG. 1 is a perspective outline view showing an embodiment of aconnector for an FPC, hereinafter referred to as a connector, accordingto the present invention. FIG. 1 is a state view of a closed coverhousing in which the principal parts are cross-sectionally shown. FIG. 2is a perspective outline view of a connector according to the presentinvention, in a state where the cover housing is open. FIG. 3 is a planview of a connector according to the present invention, in a state wherethe cover housing is open. FIG. 4 is a front view of a connectoraccording to the present invention, in a state where the cover housingis open.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view (a longitudinal sectional viewtaken on line W-W of FIG. 4) in which the side surface of the firstcontact of a connector according to the present embodiment iscross-sectionally shown, in a state where the cover housing is open.FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line X-X of FIG. 4 inwhich the side surface of the second contact of a connector according tothe present embodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where thecover housing is open. FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view, taken online Y-Y of FIG. 4, of a connector according to the present invention.FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view, taken on line Z-Z of FIG. 4, ofa connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line W-W of FIG. 4 inwhich the side surface of the first contact of a connector according tothe present embodiment is cross-sectionally shown, in a state where thecover housing is closed. FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view takenon line X-X of FIG. 4 in which the side surface of the second contact ofa connector according to the present embodiment is cross-sectionallyshown, in a state where the cover housing is closed. FIG. 11 is alongitudinal sectional view, taken on line Y-Y of FIG. 4, of a connectoraccording to the present invention. FIG. 12 is a longitudinal sectionalview, taken on line Z-Z of FIG. 4, of a connector according to thepresent invention.

First, the configuration of the connector according to the presentinvention is described. As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 10 is aconnector that is conductively connected with the FPC 1 inserted in therecess 21 and includes the insulative housing 2. The housing 2 has arecess 21 for insertion of the FPC 1. One end of the recess 21 is openand the other end of the recess 21 is formed with an insertion portion22 against which one end 11 of FPC 1 abuts. The plurality of first andsecond contacts 4, 5 have an alternately parallel arrangement aligned ina line inside the housing. The plurality of first and second contacts 4,5 are conductively connected with the FPC 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the housing 2 is molded out of an insulatingsynthetic resin made from non-conducting material. The housing 2 isformed in a roughly rectangular parallelepiped shape with a thinrectangular-parallelepiped shaped recess 21 for insertion of the FPC 1.The FPC 1 is inserted from the opening portion 24 side of the recess 21toward the insertion portion 22.

Upon insertion of the FPC 1 into the recess 21, a pair of opposingvertically-arranged walls 21 a, 21 b (refer to FIG. 2) forming therecess 21 guides the width direction of the FPC 1, and aligns the wallswith the plurality of first and second contacts 4, 5. The plurality offirst and second contacts 4, 5 arranged in the housing 2 are thenconductively connected to the FPC 1.

As shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6, the insertion portion 22 has a widthslightly larger than the thickness of the FPC 1, and has a slope formedon a surface opposing the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21 in such away that the FPC 1 can be inserted in a slanted position at apredetermined open angle from the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21.The connector 10 is a ZIF connector which requires little force toinsert and remove FPC 1 into or out of the insertion portion.

As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 10 includes a roughly rectangularshaped cover housing 3. The cover housing 3 is molded out of insulativesynthetic resin made from non-insulative material. One end of the coverhousing 3 is provided with a pivot shaft 31 of which ends are pivotallysupported by the housing 2 (refer to FIG. 2). The other end of the coverhousing 3 opens and closes the recess 21. The cover housing 3 opens toallow the FPC 1 to be inserted into the insertion portion 22.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cover housing 3 includes a pair of cylindricalprotrusions 31 a, 31 b which are coaxial to the pivot shaft 31 on bothsides of one end. The pair of cylindrical protrusions 31 a, 31 b ispivotally supported by the housing 2 on both ends. More specifically, apair of tabs 2 a, 2 b to be pressed into the housing 2 pivotally supportthe pair of cylindrical protrusions 31 a, 31 b. The pair of tabs 2 a, 2b complements the connection strength of the connector 10 to a printedcircuit board (not shown) by pressing into the housing 2 and solderingto the printed circuit board.

Closing of the cover housing 3 presses the FPC 1 inserted into theinsertion portion 22 and is made to abut against the plurality of thefirst and second contacts 4, 5 (refer to FIGS. 9 and 10). A lockingmechanism is provided to maintain a closed position of the cover housing3 upon the closing of the cover housing 3. The locking mechanism will bedescribed later.

As shown in FIG. 1 or 2, the connector 10 includes a plurality of firstcontacts 4. As shown in FIG. 5, each of the first contacts 4 includes afixing arm 41 and a horizontal arm 42 opposing each other. The firstcontact 4 includes a connection leg 43 for connecting the base ends ofthe fixing arm 41 and the horizontal arm 42 to each other. Moreover, thefirst contact 4 includes an elastic arm 44 which extends between thefixing arm 41 and the horizontal arm 42 and opposes the horizontal arm42.

As shown in FIG. 1, the housing 2 includes a plurality of longitudinalrectangular grooves in a comb-teeth shape from the opening 24 side ofthe recess 21 to the insertion portion 22 and further to the rear of theinsertion portion 22. The first contact 4 is pressed into the housing 2from the recess 21 side (refer to FIG. 5). The housing 2 is formed withlongitudinal rectangular grooves in a comb-teeth shape which run to theopening 24 side from the opposite side to the opening 24 of the recess21. The second contact 5 is pressed into the housing 2 from the oppositeside of recess 21 (refer to FIG. 6).

The longitudinal rectangular groove has a width slightly larger than theplate thicknesses of the first contact 4 and the second contact 5 sothat the elastic arm 44, and a short arm and a long arm described latercan be deflected. The first contact and the second contact may have anequal plate thickness, and the longitudinal rectangular grooves alsohave an equal width. The first contact 4 and the second contact 5 ispressed into the housing so as to come into contact with the top surfaceand the bottom surface of the recess of the housing.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first contact 4 includes a connection leg 43with the base end of the fixing arm 41 standingly provided, and thehorizontal arm 42 is extendedly branched toward the opening 24 side ofthe recess 21 from the connection leg 43. Moreover, the pressing portionopposing the bottom surface of the recess is provided on the tip side ofthe horizontal arm. The horizontal arm 42 is a rigid arm with a largergeometrical moment of inertia than that of the horizontal arm 52 of thesecond contact. The elastic arm 44 is extendedly branched from theconnection leg 43 between the fixing arm 41 and the horizontal arm 42.The elastic arm 44 has a first contact point 4 p on the tip side, facingdownwards, opposing the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21 on the tipside, and the FPC 1 is inserted in between the first contact point 4 pand the fixing arm 41 in the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21 (referto FIG. 1). The first contact point 4 p is positioned on the opening 24side of the recess 21 nearer than a second contact point 5 p describedlater.

As shown in FIG. 1 or 2, the connector 10 includes a plurality of secondcontacts 4. As shown in FIG. 6, each of the second contacts 4 includes afixing arm 51 and a horizontal arm 52 opposing each other. The secondcontact 5 has a connection leg 53, which connects the base ends of thefixing arm 51 and the horizontal arm 52. The second contact 5 includes ashort arm 54 and a long arm 55 extending to between the fixing arm 51and the horizontal arm 52 and opposing each other. The second contact 5includes a connection portion 56 which connects the base ends of theshort arm 54 and the long arm 55 each other.

The second contact 5 includes the connection leg 53 with the base end ofthe fixing arm 51 standingly provided, and the horizontal arm 52 isextendedly branched from the connection leg 53 toward the opening 24side of the recess 21. Furthermore, the second contact 5 includes apressing portion 521 opposing the long arm 55 in the bottom surface 23of the recess 21 on the tip side of the horizontal arm 52. Thehorizontal arm 52 includes an elastic arm with a smaller geometricalmoment of inertia than that of the horizontal arm 42.

The short arm 54 and the long arm 55 opposing each other extend betweenthe fixing arm 51 and the horizontal arm 52. The short arm 54 has asecond contact point 5 p facing downwards, opposing the bottom surface23 of the recess 21 and positioned away from the opening 24 of therecess 21. The FPC 1 is inserted between the second contact point 5 pand the long arm 55 in the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21. The longarm 55 includes a protrusion 5 d protruding upwards and positioned nearthe opening 24 of the recess 21.

As shown in FIG. 6, the length from the base end to the tip of the shortarm 54 is shorter than that of the long arm 55 and the base ends of theshort arm 54 and the long arm 55 are connected to each other through aconnecting portion 56, thereby providing a constitution of atuning-fork-shaped contact having an uneven length constituting the pairof the short arm 54 and the long arm 55. As shown in FIG. 6, the secondcontact point 5 p and the protrusion 5 d are spaced at a predeterminedinterval, and FPC 1 is inserted in between the second contact point 5 pand the protrusion 5 d. The protrusion 5 d is biased to push up the FPC1. In this embodiment as shown in FIG. 6, the base ends of the short arm54 and the long arm 55 are connected to each other at the connectingportion 56. The base end side of the long arm 55 in the connectingportion standingly extends to the fixing arm 51.

As shown in FIG. 1 or 2, the cover housing 3 includes a cam portion 31 cand an engaging portion 31 d. The cam portion 31 c is positioned betweena pressing portion 421 of the first contact 4 and the tip side of theelastic arm 44 and is pressed by the pressing portion 421 of the firstcontact 4 (refer to FIG. 5). The engaging portion 31 d is positionedbetween the pressing portion 521 of the second contact 5 and the bottomsurface 23 of the recess 21 and engages with the pressing portion 521 ofthe second contact 5 (refer to FIG. 6).

As shown in FIG. 5, the cam portion 31 c, formed around the pivot shaft31 (refer to FIG. 2), is a plate cam having a plane curve as itscontour. The cam portion 31 c is an eccentric cam having a portion ofthe contour deviated from the center axis of the pivot shaft 31.Moreover, the tip side of the elastic arm 44 is a follower displaced bya pivotal movement of the cam portion 31 c.

As shown in FIG. 5, the cam portion 31 c includes a first contourportion C1 and a second contour portion C2 continuous with the firstcontour C1. As shown in FIG. 9, when the first contour portion C1 abutsagainst the pressing portion 421 of the first contact 4, the cam portion31 c is biased by a strong force from the tip side of the elastic arm 44to keep the cover housing 3 closed. On the other hand, when the secondcontour portion C2 abuts against the pressing portion 421 of the firstcontact 4 as shown in FIG. 5, the cam portion 31 c is biased by a weakforce from the tip side of the elastic arm to keep the cover housing 3open.

As shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. 4, the housing 2 includes the first contacts4 and the second contacts 5 which have an alternately parallelarrangement aligned in a line therein. The plurality of first and secondcontacts 4, 5 are arranged at equal intervals to those of the conductivepatterns, exposed on one end 11 of FPC 1, as upper contact points in theFPC 1 (refer to FIG. 1). As shown in FIG. 1, the plurality of firstcontacts 4 and the plurality of second contacts 5 come into contact withthe conductive patterns (upper contact points) exposed on one surface ofthe FPC 1.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first contact 4 includes a first lead portion 4r extending in the non-insertion direction of the FPC 1 from the opening24 side of the recessed portion 21. As shown in FIG. 6, the secondcontact 5 includes a second lead portion 5 r extending in the insertiondirection of the FPC 1 from the opposite side to the recessed portion21. The bottom surface of each of the first and second lead portions 4r, 5 r is soldered to a printed circuit board (not shown refer to FIG.1).

The connector 10 provides a connector for a printed circuit boardsurface-mounted onto the printed circuit board by soldering theplurality of first and second lead portions 4 r, 5 r to the printedcircuit board. The first lead portion 4 r and the second lead portion 5r are disposed in opposite directions, therefore the pitch between thepatterns connected to the first and second lead portions can beincreased more than those of the first and second lead portions 4 r, 5 rextending in one direction. This connector is effective, especially, forthe case that the pitch of the contacts is small or approximately 0.3mm.

A configuration of the afore-mentioned lock mechanism will now bedescribed. As shown in FIG. 2, a pair of protrusions 33 a, 33 b protrudein such a direction as to oppose both sides of the cover housing 3. Apair of recesses 23 a, 23 b fitted onto the pair of protrusions 33 a, 33b is formed in an internal wall surface of the opening side of thehousing 2 in an opposing way.

As shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, when the cover housing 3 is pivoted from anopened position, the pair of protrusions 33 a, 33 b pushes the pair ofrecesses 23 a, 23 b to be deformed widely. The pair of protrusions 33 a,33 b then fits into the pair of recesses 23 a, 23 b to lock the coverhousing 3 in a closed position (refer to FIGS. 9 to 11). The coverhousing 3 is opened when a strong force that pushes the pair of recesses23 a, 23 b widely deformed is made to act, thereby releasing the lockingposition of the cover housing 3.

With reference to the drawings, an action of the connector according tothe present invention will be described.

As shown in FIG. 5, the pressing portion 421 of the tip side of thehorizontal arm 42 is made to abut against the second contour portion C2of the cam portion 31 c to keep the cover housing 3 in an open position.The tip side of the elastic arm 44 energizes the cam portion 31 c with aweak force to assist an opening position of the cover housing 3. The FPC1 is inserted between the first contact point 4 p and the fixing arm 41(refer to FIG. 5) and between the second contact point 5 p and theprotrusion 5 d (refer to FIG. 6).

Next, pivoting the cover housing 3 counter-clockwise gives rise to thestates shown in FIGS. 9 to 12. As shown in FIG. 9, when the firstcontour portion C1 abuts against the pressing portion 421 of the firstcontact 4, the cam portion 31 c is biased by a strong force from the tipside of the elastic arm 44 to keep the cover housing 3 closed.

When the FPC 1 is inserted into the recess 21 and the cover housing 3 isclosed, the cam portion 31 c pivots, so that the tip side of the elasticarm 44 is displaced, and the plurality of first contact points 4 p comeinto contact with the conductive pattern of the FPC 1 for electricalcontinuity (refer to FIG. 9). Closing the cover housing 3 allows theplurality of second contact points 5 p to come into contact with theconductive pattern of the FPC 1 for electrical continuity.

As shown in FIG. 10, closing the cover housing 3 allows the plurality offirst contact points 4 p to push down the FPC 1 to the bottom surface 23side of the recess 21. The plurality of protrusions 5 d protruding fromthe long arm 55 are pushed down to the bottom surface 23 side of therecess 21. Here, the short arm 54 and the long arm 55 become integratedinto one body, which pivots with the base ends of the short arm 54 andthe long arm 55 as the pivotal center thereof. That is, thetuning-fork-shaped contact having the pair of the short arm 54 and thelong arm 55 works so as to exert a coupled force on the FPC 1. Theplurality of second contact points 5 p generates a coupled forceopposing to one end of the FPC 1. The plurality of second contact points5 p come into contact with the conductive pattern of the FPC 1, thusenabling electrical continuity.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the cover housing 3 is closed, a uniformlydistributed load to be separated from the bottom surface 23 of therecess 21 is made to work on the cover housing 3 by a reaction R of thetip side of the elastic arm 44. In other words, a force which generatescurving so as to separate from the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21 ismade to work on the cover housing 3. The pressing portions 421, 521 ofthe plurality of first and second contacts 4, 5 exert a force movingtoward the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21 to the cam portion 31 cand the engaging portion 31 d so as to resist a uniformly distributedload separated from the bottom surface 23 of the recess 21.

A connector in the conventional art has a proportional relationship tothe number of contacts, and applies a proportional force for deforming acover housing. Accordingly, a multi-pin connector has anintegrally-formed metal member for reinforcement to prevent deformationof the cover housing. On the other hand, the connector according to thepresent invention described above receives little force for deforming acover housing from the second contact. In other words, it can be saidthat the force of deforming the cover housing is half the number ofcontacts. A well-balanced design of the reaction of the elastic arm andthe drag of the pressing portion of the second contact can allow thecover housing to bea molded product made of synthetic resin alone.

For example, the number of poles of the contacts in the connectoraccording to this embodiment a shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is 21 and thecontact pitch is 0.3 mm. In addition, a connector is also attainable, ofwhich number of poles of the contact is 51 and contact pitch is 0.3 mm.As described above, the present invention, a connector for an FPC of anupper contact type with a small pitch, provides a connector for an FPChaving a structure capable of performing complete switching withoutdeforming the cover housing made of synthetic resin alone.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been describedand illustrated above, it is to be understood that they are exemplary ofthe invention and are not to be considered to be limiting. Additions,omissions, substitutions, and other modifications can be made theretowithout departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.Accordingly, the invention is not to be considered to be limited by theforegoing description and is only limited by the scope of the appendedclaims.

1. A connector comprising a housing, a cover housing and a plurality offirst contacts and second contacts, the housing being roughlyrectangular parallelepiped in shape and having a recess formed forinsertion of an FPC, the cover housing being roughly rectangular inshape for openably and closably covering the recess of the housing andthe first contacts and second contacts being alternately arranged inparallel on a line inside the housing, wherein: each of the firstcontacts comprises: a first fixing arm and a first horizontal armopposing each other; a first connection leg for connecting base ends ofthe first fixing arm and the first horizontal arm to each other; a firstpressing portion provided on a tip side of the first horizontal arm andopposing a bottom surface of the recess; an elastic arm extendingbetween the first fixing arm and the first horizontal arm and opposingthe first horizontal arm; and a first contact point provided on a tipside of the elastic arm and opposing the bottom surface of the recess;each of the second contacts comprises: a second fixing arm and a secondhorizontal arm opposing each other; a second connection leg forconnecting base ends of the second fixing arm and the second horizontalarm to each other; a second pressing portion provided on a tip side ofthe second horizontal arm and opposing the bottom surface of the recess;a short arm and a long arm extending between the second fixing arm andthe second horizontal arm and opposing each other; a second contactpoint provided on a tip side of the short arm and positioned near theopposite side to an opening in the recess opposing the bottom surface ofthe recess; and a protrusion provided on a tip side of the long arm andpositioned near the opening in the recess, protruding toward thedirection of a top face of the recess; and the cover housing comprises:a cam portion positioned between the first pressing portion and the tipof the elastic arm and pressed by the first pressing portion; and anengaging portion positioned between the second pressing portion and thebottom surface of the recess and engaging with the second pressingportion.
 2. A connector according to claim 1, wherein the firsthorizontal arm is a rigid arm having a larger geometrical moment ofinertia than the second horizontal arm.
 3. A connector according toclaim 1, wherein the cam portion comprises a first contour portion formaintaining a closed position of the cover housing, and a second contourportion which is continuous to the first contour portion and maintainsan open position of the cover housing, the cam portion biases the firstcontact point to the FPC when the first pressing portion engages withthe second contour portion.
 4. A connector according to claim 1, whereinthe first contact point is positioned nearer to the opening side of therecess than the second contact point.
 5. A connector according to claim1, wherein a base end of the short arm and a base end of the long armare connected to each other and the base end of the long arm isstandingly extended from the second fixing arm.
 6. A connector accordingto claim 1, wherein the first contact includes a first lead portionextending in a non-insertion direction of the FPC from the opening sideof the recess, the second contact includes a second lead portionextending in an insertion direction of the FPC from the opening side ofthe recess, and a bottom surface of the first lead portion and a bottomsurface of the second lead portion are soldered to a printed circuitboard.
 7. A connector according to claim 2, wherein the cam portioncomprises a first contour portion for maintaining a closing position ofthe cover housing, and a second contour portion which is continuous tothe first contour portion and maintains an open position of the coverhousing, the cam portion biases the first contact point to the FPC whenthe first pressing portion engages with the second contour portion.
 8. Aconnector according to claim 2, wherein the first contact point ispositioned nearer to the opening side of the recess than the secondcontact point.
 9. A connector according to claim 3, wherein the firstcontact point is positioned nearer to the opening side of the recessthan the second contact point.
 10. A connector according to claim 2,wherein a base end of the short arm and a base end of the long arm areconnected to each other and the base end of the long arm is standinglyextended from the second fixing arm.
 11. A connector according to claim3, wherein a base end of the short arm and a base end of the long armare connected to each other and the base end of the long arm isstandingly extended from the second fixing arm.
 12. A connectoraccording to claim 4, wherein a base end of the short arm and a base endof the long arm are connected to each other and the base end of the longarm is standingly extended from the second fixing arm.
 13. A connectoraccording to claim 2, wherein the first contact includes a first leadportion extending in a non-insertion direction of the FPC from theopening side of the recess, the second contact includes a second leadportion extending in an insertion direction of the FPC from the openingside of the recess, and a bottom surface of the first lead portion and abottom surface of the second lead portion are soldered to a printedcircuit board.
 14. A connector according to claim 3, wherein the firstcontact includes a first lead portion extending in a non-insertiondirection of the FPC from the opening side of the recess, the secondcontact includes a second lead portion extending in an insertiondirection of the FPC from the opening side of the recess, and a bottomsurface of the first lead portion and a bottom surface of the secondlead portion are soldered to a printed circuit board.
 15. A connectoraccording to claim 4, wherein the first contact includes a first leadportion extending in a non-insertion direction of the FPC from theopening side of the recess, the second contact includes a second leadportion extending in an insertion direction of the FPC from the openingside of the recess, and a bottom surface of the first lead portion and abottom surface of the second lead portion are soldered to a printedcircuit board.
 16. A connector according to claim 5, wherein the firstcontact includes a first lead portion extending in a non-insertiondirection of the FPC from the opening side of the recess, the secondcontact includes a second lead portion extending in an insertiondirection of the FPC from the opening side of the recess, and a bottomsurface of the first lead portion and a bottom surface of the secondlead portion are soldered to a printed circuit board.